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‘BIRDS’ FACE ACID TEST AT ZANACO FC

07/03/2018 03:22:00 BY LWAZI DLAMINI

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Sports Editor
(In Lusaka, Zambia)
Courtesy of Swazi MTN
Zanaco FC vs
Mbabane Swallows
Venue: Nkoloma Stadium
Kickoff time: 3pm

LUSAKA – Legend has it that during World War II, when the odds were stacked heavily stacked against Britain, Winston Churchill rallied his troops with the immortal words: “We shall fight them on beaches and on the shores….we shall fight them in the air and on the ground but we will never surrender.”

Temperamental Mbabane Swallows head coach Thabo ‘Koki’ Vilakati, was probably close to mumbling the same words when he gave Yours Truly his assessment ahead of today’s crucial CAF Champions League first round clash against the ‘Bankers’ of Zambia, as Zanaco FC are affectionately known in this hotter-than-hell Lusaka.

Swallows will need the same war talk if they are to come out alive from the furnace of the Zambian top side, who finished runners up in the MTN First Division league last season and reached this stage at the backdrop of a 6 - 1 aggregate win over a hapless Gambia’s Armed Forces side.

“We know they are a very strong side but we don’t fear them. In life, there is a first time for everything. We know we don’t have a good record against Zambian teams but we are here for a good result. It won’t matter whether we play ugly, we need to get a result,” Vilakati said emphatically, 24 hours before the 3pm clash at the modest 5 000 capacity Nkoloma Stadium today.

Win pretty, win ugly seems to be the unwritten rule of the Swallows of Mbabane these days as they deal with the sad demise of their influential boss, Victor ‘Maradona’ Gamedze, killed brutally on the fateful Sunday evening of January 14, marred by suspension of two key players, left back, Sanele Mkhwele and industrious midfielder, Njabulo ‘D4D’ Ndlovu, still awfully missing recuperating striker, Sabelo ‘Sikhali’ Ndzinisa, coupled with a sometimes tactical conundrum by coach ‘Koki’ Vilakati.

The Swallows of Mbabane are not the same swashbuckling outfit that flattened everything before them in their quest for glory, in particular the unforgettable exploits in the CAF Confederation Cup, where they became the first Swazi team to reach the group stages under the new format. Today, the red and white outfit are as sickle as a parrot. They may remain unbeaten in 43 league games stretching back to the last 3-1 defeat to Royal Leopard on May 15, 2016; unbeaten in 28 matches this season in all domestic competitions; in the third successive Cup final of the richest club competition, the Ingwenyama Cup and in the last 16 stage of the SwaziBank Cup, but the performance in general has not been pleasing even in the eyes of their most bias boisterous supporter.